Caribbean Times 31st Issue - Tuesday 8th November 2016

6 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g
Tuesday 8th November 2016
Hon. Asot Michael gives welcome remarks at
World Travel Market 2016 Appreciation Dinner
Ladies and Gentlemen,
A pleasant good evening!
On behalf of the Ministry of Tourism
and the Antigua and Barbuda
Tourism Authority, I extend a warm
welcome to you all and thank you for
joining us on this unique Thames River
experience.
We would have preferred if we
could be sailing in the warm crystal
clear waters of our tropical islands,
but perhaps we can arrange that at a
later date.
Perhaps we should not complain
too much about the cold English
weather because without it we may
not have so many of our British guests
clamoring to escape to the warm Caribbean.
Cold though it may be this week,
World Travel Market fortunately provides
a great opportunity for all of us
to get together and celebrate the results
of our combined efforts to bring
tourism and travel business to our
destination, and in so doing generate
valuable economic activity for the
benefit of our beautiful twin islands
of Antigua and Barbuda.
Tourism should and must be profitable
for all stakeholders, including
the people and Government. Over
many years Tourism has become a
way of life for many of our people
and a successful industry is vital to
the well-being of families and communities
all over our proud and beautiful
islands.
Tonight I especially want to say
how grateful we are that all of you
here continue to partner with us to
make this vital industry successful.
Whichever area of the industry
you serve, all of you are extremely
valuable to sustaining and growing
the travel and tourism business to Antigua
and Barbuda, and we thank for
joining this event as our guests this
evening.
As we approach the end of 2016
we can be proud of another successful
year for our tourism. And in spite
of the challenges the leisure business
now faces in some markets, we in Antigua
continue to have good reason
for optimism looking forward. And
our partners can be assured that our
Government will do whatever is necessary
to achieve our mutual growth
objectives.
Just in the last two years, we have
seen a number of exciting new projects
emerging including the opening
of new hotels such as Ocean Point
Resort and Spa; Tamarind Hills - the
stunning collection of villas, and Barbuda
Belle - which has become the
belle of the media with its eco-friendly
luxury concept. The renewed interest
in Barbuda is not happening by
accident.
I am also pleased that the Elite Island
Resorts has reopened Pineapple
Beach Club as an adults-only resort
and that they are also managing Jolly
Beach which is again becoming a
bee-hive of tourism activity.
As a result, 2017 will see an extra
273 new rooms added to our destination
room stock.
Another exciting opening will be
the new luxury hotel development,
Hodges Bay, set to open in 2017.
Poised to assume an iconic status
as another flagship development for
Antigua, Hodges Bay will offer luxurious
oceanfront homes, penthouses,
villas and suites; hotel accommodation,
innovative dining options, and
expansive leisure facilities. Tamarind
Hills will open a further 40 villas
and Verandah Resort and Spa will
open 6 new two bed villa’s with pools.
Beyond this, over the next few
years there are a number of projects
already undergoing the design phase
and by 2019 we expect to see some
2,000 hotels rooms under construction.
Needless to say, this will allow us
to welcome more flights from our existing
airline partners and to attract
new airlines to the island.
So, my friends and guests, this is a
time of much growth and innovation
for Antigua’s tourism product. And I
ask you to continue your valued efforts
to sell Antigua & Barbuda as
one of the leading tourism products
in our region.
However, before closing I want to
remind you that we also have much to
look forward to in the near future….
Later this month we will be honoured
to welcome His Royal Highness,
Prince Harry, to our twin islands.
From 20 th to 22 nd November he
will visit us as the first stop on an official
visit to the Caribbean, on behalf
of Her Majesty The Queen, on the occasion
of the 35th Anniversary of Independence
in Antigua and Barbuda.
And we are getting ready for a
landmark year ahead as 2017 will be
a major anniversary year for Antigua
and Barbuda:
Our Carnival – the Caribbean’s
greatest summer festival - will be celebrating
its 60 th Anniversary in August.
This emancipation celebration
will feature an explosion of music,
cont’d on pg 7